


The Perils of Having Your Cake and Eating It

by aravenwood



Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: Allergies, Anaphylaxis, Gen, Kink Meme, Noct's Cake, Poor Prompto
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-11-10
Updated: 2017-11-10
Packaged: 2019-01-31 15:44:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,769
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12684900
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/aravenwood/pseuds/aravenwood
Summary: Prompto will never say no to anything Ignis makes, but maybe he should have.





	The Perils of Having Your Cake and Eating It

**Author's Note:**

> I cannot get enough of Prompto whump right now. Seriously, it's the only thing I can write right now and it's both the best and the worst thing to happen.
> 
> Here's a fill for the following prompt on the kink meme;
> 
> While trying to find the perfect flavor for Noctis special cake, Ignis asks for Prompto to try out the new dessert. But Prompto ends up being allergic to whatever ingredient Ignis used. 
> 
> \+ Very worried Chocobros and Ignis doing his best to take care of Prompto because he feels kind of guilty.

Prompto didn’t live his life by many rules, but there was one that he’d adopted soon after befriending Noct – if Ignis offered food, take it because it was likely to be the best food he’d ever eat, and much better than any salad or microwave meal that made up his normal diet. Even the desserts were irresistible. Well worth the extra hour of running he’d need to do to burn it off. So when a sweet and fruity scent entered his nostrils, he abandoned his studies to investigate.

“Ah Prompto, just the man I was looking for,” Ignis greeted with a smile. Uh oh, that wasn’t a good kind of a smile, it was an evil “I’ve been expecting you” kind that made Prompto wish he’d never entered the kitchen. But on the kitchen counter was a small, round cake with bright red spots of fruit covering the outside and he edged closer with a heart full of hope.

He gestured to the cake with his head. “That looks awesome, Iggy. Don’t suppose I could try a little bit?” he asked hesitantly, worrying about sounding like a mooch in front of the advisor. Up until now, he’d been good about that; never asked for everything, always took time to accept dinner invitations and denied seconds when they were offered, even if dinner that night was his all-time favourite. But that cake…damn it looked good. Maybe he’d get a tiny bit? Just a bite.

Ignis passed over a fork. “By all means, Prompto. That’s just why I was needing you – to see what you think of it before I let Noct try it. I have a good feeling about this one, but I try not to get my hopes up.” And he pushed the plate a little closer to Prompto and waved his hand over it. “Tell me what you think.”

Prompto paused for a few seconds, half-expecting it to be a trick even although Ignis had never tricked him before. He refused to meet Ignis’s eyes as he hesitated, but realised quickly enough how ungrateful he had to look. So he slid the fork carefully through the dessert and cut himself a small piece. He examined it on the edge of his fork, sniffed it and smiled as he caught a hint of ginger. Gingerbread was one of his favourites of Iggy’s, maybe it would be something like that?

He stuffed the forkful in his mouth, cursing all the while at his greediness. First, he got the ginger and smiled with his mouth full. Then the fruit – cherries, maybe, or something a little sweeter. Finally, a crunch. He paused mid-chew. Honeycomb? No, not sweet enough. A little tasteless, actually. A little flaky.

Oh.

He swallowed out of reflex, and his brain screamed at him for it. Don’t swallow it, you aren’t supposed to swallow it, if you swallow them then you die. But it was too late. Already his throat was a little tight and his lips tingled like he had pins and needles. Not good, a fast-acting reaction then.

“Prompto?” Ignis frowned at him across the counter. Shit, he was mad. Insulted that the compliments weren’t coming thick and fast like they normally did.

“’s good, Iggy…just…just…nuts,” Prompto managed to say, but the words came out slurred and his voice almost unrecognisable.  He reached up to massage his throat, tried to massage the swelling away. It wouldn’t work but it was worth a try.

Ignis was silent for a few seconds, eyes narrowed thoughtfully. They widened again as Prompto’s breaths became audible wheezes. “Prompto, are you allergic? Do you have an epipen?” he asked in one breath, as if he was trying to conserve oxygen on Prompto’s behalf.

Prompto didn’t have the breath to answer, so he just nodded once and then shook his head – yes he was allergic, no he didn’t have a pen. How _could_ he have one? They cost money that he couldn’t afford to waste, not when he was struggling to afford even the most basic of necessities.

Pausing again to interpret the gestures, Ignis scrambled to open one of the higher kitchen cabinets with none of his usual grace. He stood up on his toes to pull down a large green box with a white cross on top and ripped it open before he’d even closed the door. He pulled out bandages and tweezers and medications and creams and pretty much everything Prompto imagined would ever be needed for any household emergency, and even some stuff that he’d never imagine would get used. The only thing he kept a hold of was the epipen.

By now, Prompto could barely breathe, could barely concentrate on anything other than his own wheezing and the itchiness all over his skin. He got rashes like that sometimes when he bought the cheapest soap; skin covered in fat red bumps that itched like hell and wouldn’t stop until he’d showered several times and dumped all of his clothing in cold water. This one didn’t feel quite as itchy, but maybe that was just because he was preoccupied and couldn’t bring himself to care about something as minor as a need to scratch.

Ignis touched his shoulder briefly and said, “It’s alright, it’ll be better soon,” then rolled him onto his side and pulled the waistband of his pants down past his hips, down to just above his knees. There was a sharp pain then in his thigh and he flinched weakly. His eyelids felt heavy, his body weak. He couldn’t believe that he was barely breathing and yet he just wanted to sleep. The epipen had helped a little and he wasn’t feeling quite as wheezy. Sure he could breathe now, but it felt as if he’d just ran further than ever before.

Maybe sleep wouldn’t be so ridiculous in that case. Maybe it was justified.

After a check-up in the Citadel hospital, Prompto was resting on the sofa while the other three hovered anxiously nearby. He’d regained some of his colour but the rash was still there all over his face, neck and arms, still bright with a cloud of white over it where he’d been itching. That he was sleeping was probably a relief or he’d be clawing at it until he bled.

Ignis hadn’t looked away once. He didn’t dare. After all, he’d nearly killed the boy with his inattention – he’d read every record there was when Noct first befriended him and he still couldn’t remember seeing the allergy mentioned anywhere. He should have asked before letting him try it; asked “are you allergic to nuts?” It wasn’t that hard to ask.

“He’ll be alright, won’t he?” Noct asked from under Prompto’s feet. His concern was more obviously expressed on his face, frowning and glancing at Prompto’s face every few seconds and keeping his hand over his friend’s radial pulse.

“Yes, I believe so,” Ignis replied. No thanks to me, he added in his head. “And we’ll have to remember in the future to check his food for nuts or he’ll go through a similar reaction.”

Gladio winced. “Anything we can do about that rash?” he asked.

Of course, why didn’t he think of that? Ignis nodded quickly and picked up a cold compress from the refrigerator, and eased it onto the raised skin. “It’ll take a while to go away, but it will.” He didn’t know who he was trying to convince – them or himself. He’d nearly killed Prompto. Nearly killed him. If not for the epipen then there would be no nearly about it. For the first time, he was ready to thank Gladio for his shellfish allergy, just as he was ready to kill Prompto for not carrying anything himself despite a bee – and now nut – allergy. How could the boy be so stupid that he wouldn’t take any precautionary measures? No epipen, no antihistamines, had never even asked if his food contained nuts!

Then he paused. Thought of how easily he’d gotten the epipen from the Citadel's medics and of how comparatively difficult it must be for a regular citizen, of how expensive getting a doctor’s appointment had to be. What was it Prompto had said the last time he’d come down with a severe stomach ache? Something about having to wait until his next payday before he could refill his meds? If he couldn’t afford his daily prescribed medication then what were the odds of him “wasting” money on something he’d hardly ever need?

Despite all the initial worries of Prompto taking advantage of Noct’s money and power and Prompto quickly proving them wrong, sometimes Ignis wished that he _would_ take advantage every now and again. It would make everything a lot easier, and it would settle the guilt they were all feeling.

Prompto let out a weak moan and tried to roll onto his other side but instead almost rolled all the way off. Only Gladio's hand on his shoulder saved him. He whimpered at the contact. One arm came up to scratch at the rash on his neck but Ignis caught his hand and lowered it back down.

“It's alright, Prompto, it’s okay,” he told the younger boy. His fingers itched to touch Prompto, to take his pulse and feel the heat radiate from beneath his skin. Noct beat him to it, though; laced his fingers through Prompto's hair and brushed it away from his face.

“You scared us,” Noct whispered, “you had a reaction to the nuts in Iggy's cake.”

Prompto nodded sleepily. “Was that the one? Did he figure it out?” he asked like that was the most important thing. The genuine honesty in his voice made Ignis want to simultaneously hug him for caring and slap him for failing to realise how serious the situation had been.

But he did neither. Instead he dropped into a crouch next to Prompto, touched his shoulder and said, “thank you for your help.” Then he left under the pretence of allowing Noct some time with his best friend and as soon as he was out of earshot he was on his phone.

He dialled. For several seconds, no one answered, but then a voice said in his ear, “Hello?”

Ignis put on his politest voice. “Hello, I need to order a refill on a prescription. The name? Prompto Argentum.” He smiled to himself as he listened to the pharmacist’s typing. He was a man who liked to be prepared, a man who had to be able to anticipate all outcomes, but most of all he was someone who needed to look after his friends.

**Author's Note:**

> I swear I don't normally post stories this often but I went through the Pinboard for the kink meme and found so much good stuff to write about!
> 
> Thanks for reading!


End file.
